While on our visit (over a week ago now :() I found the dining plan to be pretty good, aside from one massive flaw....
The Teatime Torture Treat.
Its hideously organised and just disappointing in every aspect.
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I understand you used to be able to have a variety of treats depending on the location, which was simplified to just a donut or a magnum nut bar plus a drink.
Out of 5 days and 5 vouchers we used it twice and had such poor service on both times we never used it again. It felt like a punishment for having it on your package. If disney are so against it, drop it. It felt like they couldnt cope with it or wanted it. I ended up feeling that embarrassed by using it and annoyed at the service we just didnt bother again.
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Locations:
How many locations serve donuts and ice creams? LOADS!
But where can you use it? 1 place in studios, a few more in Disneyland Park but all restaurants.
Firstly the studios is an awful set up, 1 place. 1. What a stupid decision. Also the worst dining venue on the park, its essentially a free for all in a cramped space.
Over in DLP its only restaurants, why are you throwing people who can be served (in theory) in a few moments in with people who want full meals.
Timing:
Studios: 30 minutes to get served
DLP: 45 minutes to get served
1 hour and 23 mins over 2 days to get snacks and drinks for 4. Where is that acceptable?
Options:
I dread to think how it was beyond simplifying, but even know there were times donuts werent available (also seeing somone pack them individually from one giant bin-liner type blue bag does ruin the magic a tad).
Want your magnum without nuts? NOPE. Dont even ask.
Tea:
Im a yorkshire man, I like a cup of tea, and while issues werentt limited to the Teatime Torture - trying to get a tea at Disney Paris is a bad time.
Twice, when asking for milk we got black tea. Once we got milk, it was out of date and lumpy. Once we got a giant cup of hot milk.
Once we got an adequate amount of cold milk! HURRAH.
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We were just really unlucky or is it always this bad?
I'm going to Disneyland Paris at the end of April and we are also on the dining plan, I've heard a lot of confusing info about the tea time treat, a lot negative. So where can you actually get it, is it just the doughnut/ice cream and when is it available?
45 minutes waiting isn't just a tea time terror thing, it sounds like every time I've ordered at Casey's Corner (and not just in peak season, I'm talking about 2 or 3 people that knew what they wanted in the queue before me!).
In feb half term which was quite busy i went to cowboy cookout each time to get ours and there was never a queue we were in and out in 5 mins max and the same server each time was really helpful, they had run out of donuts one time and they offered us other things to replace them
We did make the mistake of using Casey's twice* (ill come back to this).
yes @ Pugritz, all you are now allowed is a donut or nut magnum bar. The donut is fine, i dont like nuts so never tried a magnum - but the kids said it was ok. You can have a thimble of fizzy pop of a hot drink, dont ask for tea.
The donuts are nice, and if the process was simple to grab a snack and drink it would be nice, id just avoid holding any hope on it being useful.
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* Casey's Corner. Or than land time forgot.
Awful. Slow. New fresh hell.
This is a small venue, with 3 menu options - hot dog, chicken nuggets, chips - youd have thought it was hard to go wrong.
Every time someone in the ALWAYS expansive queue, orders one of the 3 menu items they sell, you see the sheer panic in the staff members eyes. Sometimes there are 2 of them to share the chaos.
1 runs to a hot food order point, staff speak to-and-fro, 'they want food' 'yes' 'here?' 'yes' what?' 'one of the menu choices' 'OMG'.
The second person might do drinks, they might go for a walk, they might do nothing.
About 10 mins later you'll get some food. It'll be cold. The staff still in shock. Its always shit.
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Its a small place, with a tiny venue, why dont they work like McDonalds and just keep churning food out, pre pour drinks, have it ready to go as soon as theres a guest at the till. Its hard to be mad at a place which just is hysterical to watch in its poor organisation and sheer surprise people want to use it. Its an attraction on its own.
The point of the Pause Gourmande is to get more people into the indoor counter service restaurants in the late afternoon. It isn't valid at the outdoor locations such as the Mad Hatter because there is very little seating space. And there are two places to use it in the Studios – Restaurant en Coulisse (by the entrance) and Blockbuster Café (near Rock & Roller Coaster Avec Aerosmith).
I do agree that the reduction in choices doesn't make a lot of sense though.
Quote from: BenRM on April 12, 2015, 02:02:02 AM
We did make the mistake of using Casey's twice* (ill come back to this).
* Casey's Corner. Or than land time forgot.
Awful. Slow. New fresh hell.
This is a small venue, with 3 menu options - hot dog, chicken nuggets, chips - youd have thought it was hard to go wrong.
Every time someone in the ALWAYS expansive queue, orders one of the 3 menu items they sell, you see the sheer panic in the staff members eyes. Sometimes there are 2 of them to share the chaos.
1 runs to a hot food order point, staff speak to-and-fro, 'they want food' 'yes' 'here?' 'yes' what?' 'one of the menu choices' 'OMG'.
The second person might do drinks, they might go for a walk, they might do nothing.
About 10 mins later you'll get some food. It'll be cold. The staff still in shock. Its always shit.
--
Its a small place, with a tiny venue, why dont they work like McDonalds and just keep churning food out, pre pour drinks, have it ready to go as soon as theres a guest at the till. Its hard to be mad at a place which just is hysterical to watch in its poor organisation and sheer surprise people want to use it. Its an attraction on its own.
Total house of horrors yeah...
I've gone there 3 times since 2009, because of a friend of mine seems to have the misguided idea that it is the holy grail of eateries in a Disney themepark (at this point I don't think anyone is willing to humor him and go there anymore).
Every ...single ...time they got part of our order wrong.
I remember a friend of mine went in there to get a cola and she got a fanta.
Frankly I think they should close down Casey's and turn it into a vegetarian restaurant, Disney has more need of that than of another fast food joint :)
And preferably refurb it thoroughly enough to get all the fail out.
Ironically, the first two years Disneyland Paris was open, Casey's was the most efficient place to get food and/or drinks in the park when it came to counter service. How the times change...
I think the thing that annoys me most about the teatime treat thing is that so many of the little stands and stall that offer crepes or whathaveyou have big signs on that say 'pause gormande' - and its only when you get the fron tof the queue do you find that they don't take the vouchers. We only made that mistake once. Also, would it kill the staff on these things to smile?????
Hmm this all seems a bit disappointing. Luckily this isn't a deal breaker for us - seems like they'll be looking to phase it out
Quote from: seraphelle on April 13, 2015, 12:59:43 PM
I think the thing that annoys me most about the teatime treat thing is that so many of the little stands and stall that offer crepes or whathaveyou have big signs on that say 'pause gormande' - and its only when you get the fron tof the queue do you find that they don't take the vouchers. We only made that mistake once. Also, would it kill the staff on these things to smile?????
So wait, where can you actually get the pause gormande, I'm confused because I also saw the signs. Like, how do I find out? Also, do you know whether it's possible to pay a bit extra and get the souvenir cup with your tea time?
Quote from: Pugritz on April 13, 2015, 10:55:33 PM
Quote from: seraphelle on April 13, 2015, 12:59:43 PM
I think the thing that annoys me most about the teatime treat thing is that so many of the little stands and stall that offer crepes or whathaveyou have big signs on that say 'pause gormande' - and its only when you get the fron tof the queue do you find that they don't take the vouchers. We only made that mistake once. Also, would it kill the staff on these things to smile?????
So wait, where can you actually get the pause gormande, I'm confused because I also saw the signs. Like, how do I find out? Also, do you know whether it's possible to pay a bit extra and get the souvenir cup with your tea time?
When we went in feb it was printed on the vouchers where you could use them
Quote from: stifle on April 12, 2015, 03:11:54 PMd there are two places to use it in the Studios – Restaurant en Coulisse (by the entrance) and Blockbuster Café (near Rock & Roller Coaster Avec Aerosmith).
Sadly that is now not true, on the voucher it now states only Coulisse.
I get the idea that they want to move people indoors in the afternoon, but it just makes for a horrible experience. It certainly left a bitter taste in my mouth, and not just the out of date milk.
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Its a total shame you walk past loads of carts or venues with donuts/ice cream yet cannot use them, it seems so illogical to sell things then refuse service at such a large majority of places. As mentioned it may be to do with space, but I'm quite happy to walk 5 mins to find a bench than wait 40 to get served. Call me old fashioned if you must.
The vouchers explicitly print where you can use them, and they will not be accepted anywhere else. If the parks are even slightly busy I would recommend not using them.
If Disney insist upon using them only in restaurant venues there should be a separate queue, they could serve these so quickly but chose not to.
I cannot tell you how much it really tainted our experience, by only 2 times. Its that bad. AVOID.
You can use your Tea Time voucher at this restaurants:
Studios:
En Coulisse
Blockbuster Cafe
Disneyland Park:
Cable Car Bakeshop
Victoria's
Cafe Hyperion
Bella Notte
Toad Hall
Chalet de la Marionnette
Hakuna Matata
Colonel Hathi's
Fuente del Oro
Cowboy Cookout
I hope, I haven't forget any.
Blockbuster cafe has been removed from the offer. I think Ive got an unused voucher kicking around, which confirms this.
I've just come back from five days at Disney and having seen this post before I went I felt nervous about using the tea time treat vouchers.
My husband and I used our vouchers in Colonel Hathis pizza outpost, Toad Hall, Last Chance Cafe and En Coulisse in Disney Studios.
As we had an early breakfast each day and used our magic hours in the park we were ravenous by 3 o'clock and grateful for a snack and drink.
The choice of a doughnut or ice cream was great, and the sugar hit we needed. We had good service with a smile everyday and the only fault was a poor cup of tea one day.
The only place we queued was in the Studios, but it was fast moving and we got a seat each place we went.
I would definitely recommend it to others, after my initial reservations it was a welcome treat everyday :)
Quote from: Nodsy2015 on May 02, 2015, 11:33:02 AM
I've just come back from five days at Disney and having seen this post before I went I felt nervous about using the tea time treat vouchers.
My husband and I used our vouchers in Colonel Hathis pizza outpost, Toad Hall, Last Chance Cafe and En Coulisse in Disney Studios.
As we had an early breakfast each day and used our magic hours in the park we were ravenous by 3 o'clock and grateful for a snack and drink.
The choice of a doughnut or ice cream was great, and the sugar hit we needed. We had good service with a smile everyday and the only fault was a poor cup of tea one day.
The only place we queued was in the Studios, but it was fast moving and we got a seat each place we went.
I would definitely recommend it to others, after my initial reservations it was a welcome treat everyday :)
I agree! We had fine service too, although we only used the vouchers once so we didn't have have much chance of faults. There was written on the vouchers where we could use them. We went to Casey's Corner and swapped the vouchers for coffee and doughnuts and ordered two hotdogs. The coffee and hotdogs were warm and the doughnuts tasted okay :) It's a pity to read that so many people had bad experiences, since for me (and I think many others with me?) Disney is all about the smiles and good service.
That's good to know. We were rather apprehensive from all the negative reviews. But it's good to know that it's alright. Looking forward to using them on our trip in Jun 2015.
We had a mealplan for the first time on our last visit (in March) and we had no problems at all with the pause gourmande. We had an Ice cream and some cool drinks on our first day at Colonel Hathi's and it was very nice to had a cold snack as it was a warm, sunny day. The offered a fruit cake too by the way, so maybe it's not just the doughnut or ice cream?
The second day we had hot chocolate and doughnuts and we both liked it. The doughnuts were good, the hot chocolate was a little too sweet for me, but my husband loves sweet things so he really loved it. ;D
We didn't have to wait very long for our snacks and drinks and we had a chance to sit down, get a little rest and someting to eat before dinner. (we just had a big breakfast and dinner, no lunch ;))
I would definitly use them again! ;D
we went in January 2015 and omg the treat time treat torture as you put it was a nightmare. Most of the restaurants listed on the voucher were either closed early due to fireworks starting (remember January early hours) so we headed of to Casey's Corner where my patient daughter waited for over 45 mins to get our treat, so after that needless to say we did not bother as we were staying the Sequioa lodge golden forest so we went back there for treat instead. We went to complain about the tea time treat but decided that it wasn't worth it. So this time we are staying off site and doing our own choosing of food and its a relief to be honest